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Fire Emblem Engage: The best classes for each character

Time for class

Fire Emblem Engage best class for each character: A young anime woman with dark skin and black hair, wearing brightly colored baubles in her hair, is wielding a large spear against a group of indistinguishable foes
Josh Broadwell avatar
Guide by Josh Broadwell Contributor
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The best class for each character in Fire Emblem Engage depends on your playstyle and how your characters grow. Like other Fire Emblem games, a character’s stat growth depends in large part on random chance, though some characters are predisposed to excel in certain areas - Jade with defense and Chloe with speed, for example.

Changing classes is easier than ever in Engage, but unless you have a lot of gold to throw around, you may want to focus on just a few classes and only for the characters you use most often.

We used our own experience with each class and character and referred to individual stat growth rates (handily compiled on Serenes Forest) to shed light on other character growth possibilities. If you're still getting to grips with what the numbers mean, check out our Fire Emblem Engage stats explainer.

There's an awful lot going on in Engage, but this video tries to boil it down some.

Best class for each character in Fire Emblem Engage

Since Seals are expensive in the shop and in short supply on the battlefield, you may want to consider keeping a separate save file after you change a character’s class. Use them in a skirmish, see what you think, and if necessary, go back to your original save file to continue. That way, you aren’t wasting valuable resources and can get a decent idea of how your decision will affect your party in battle.

How to change class in Fire Emblem Engage

You can change a unit’s class in Fire Emblem Engage in two ways. You can use a Second Seal to change to any class at the unit’s current level. If they’re in a base class such as archer, for example, a Second Seal lets them swap to any other base class – knight, cavalier, sword fighter, and so on – if they have the right weapon proficiencies.

The same is true at the advanced level. A Griffin Knight can use a Second Seal and become a Hero without having to use a Master Seal, so if you aren’t happy with a unit’s current class, you can easily change it with a bit of Emblem training in the arena.

Once a unit reaches level 10, you can elevate them to an advanced class by using a Master Seal. Some characters in a “special class,” such as Thief or Dancer, must reach level 21 in that class before they can change to an advanced class.

Any advanced class is open for any character, assuming they have the correct weapon proficiencies for it.

To change a character’s class, open the menu, and choose the “Inventory” option, and pick the character you want. “Change Class” is at the bottom of that sub-menu.

Fire Emblem Engage Master Seal locations

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You may find a Master Seal as a random drop in battle, usually from a boss character, but the most reliable way to obtain them is by purchasing them from the Item Shop in the Somniel's central plaza. You can buy as many as you need for 2,500 gold, and the same is true for Second Seals as well.

How to raise weapon proficiency in Fire Emblem Engage

Unlike previous Fire Emblem games, weapon proficiency in Engage won’t increase in battle. The only way to raise it is by raising a character’s bond level with the right Emblem Hero.

The fastest way to do this is in the arena. In the training menu screen, you can see what weapon proficiency an Emblem offers and what bond level is required to unlock it. Spending Bond Fragments to level up bond levels is a better use of the items than making or melding lesser Emblem Rings, especially before chapter 10, so consider setting aside a few thousand just for training.

Best class for Alear – Divine Dragon

Alear’s special class Divine Dragon offers gives our hero high stats, good defense, and even decent resistance, making it a strong all-’rounder choice. The Divine Spirit skill is another big draw. It reduces Alear’s Engage meter by one bar, so you can summon Emblems faster – particularly handy in later chapters.

Alear’s newfound fist proficiency is a nice throwback to Three Houses, but not especially useful. If you’re after a more exciting secondary weapon, Hero is a strong second pick for Alear with comparable stats in everything but resistance.

Just bear in mind that, regardless of what class Alear is, they remain a Dragon unit. That means Wyrmslayers and other dragon-specific weapons will deal extra damage to them.

Best class for Framme – High Priest

More magic users is always a good thing, and Framme becomes much more useful in this class than she does as a Qi Adept. Just make sure you raise her bond level with Celica before chapter 10. For story reasons, you won’t have access to Celica after that point for the next several chapters, and there’s no other way to raise tome proficiency.

Best class for Clanne – Mage Knight

Mage Knight gives Clanne better mobility and, more importantly, lets him wield swords. Give him a Levin Sword and a guard to keep him safe, and you’ve got a fantastic magic damage dealer.

Best class for Vander – Great Knight

Like most “experienced advisor” characters in Fire Emblem, Vander works best in the class that he starts with. Great Knight gives him substantial defense and attack. Just don’t let him get overwhelmed or face off against mages.

Best class for Alfred – Avenir

A lord’s unique class is usually their ideal advanced class, and that’s technically true for Alfred. Avenir has higher stats than most cavalry units and gives Alfred a unique skill that may reduce the physical damage he takes.

Alfred struggles with low speed and attack, though, which makes it difficult to use him effectively. You may want to experiment with him as a General or Great Knight instead, where he gets strength and defense boosts to help mitigate his other weaknesses.

Best class for Boucheron – Warrior

Boucheron is powerful to begin with, and Warrior just makes him even better. Aside from gaining the ability to use bows, he’ll deal 50 percent more damage to broken foes.

Best class for Etie – Bow Knight

Etie gets a better set of stats as a Bow Knight than she does as a Sniper, along with the chance to wield a second weapon. Combine that with the Bow Knight’s higher mobility, and you get a unit that’s generally just more useful than the traditional Sniper.

Erie has higher strength growth rates than Alcryst, so you might want to experiment with her as a Warrior as well to help get the most from those muscles.

Best class for Celine – Vidame

Celine’s unique advanced class is excellent. It gives her the option to use swords and staves as well as tomes, and the class skill is even better. Ignis boosts magic attack based on the unit’s strength and magic stats. Vidame has high growth rates for both, so while Celine’s speed remains low, you can count on her to deal heavy damage.

Best class for Chloe – Griffin Knight

Griffin Knight gives Chloe a bit of welcome fortitude compared to the fragile Pegasus Knight class and the option to use a staff. Griffin Knights don’t have spectacular magic growth, but if you give her Mend or Physic and a non-healing staff – Obstruct, Warp, or Rescue, for example – she becomes a valuable support hybrid.

Best class for Louis – General (any weapon)

Louis is a strong, slow monster, and while you could change that by making him a Swordmaster, you may as well play to his strengths and turn him into a General. He gets a decent boost in all stats, especially rating, strength, and defense, and since knights and generals can’t break, you can use Louis to hold the line or create bottlenecks to stall the enemy.

Great Knight is a good alternative, though. Its stat boosts aren’t quite as impressive, but the Allied Defense skill is useful. If Louis is between an ally and an enemy, he takes 3 less damage during combat with that enemy.

Best class for Jean – High Priest

Like with Framme, there’s just no reason to make Jean a Martial Master. His high base magic stat makes him perfectly suited for using tomes anyway, and his low strength means you’ll never get much out of his brawling other than breaking archers and mages.

Best class for Anna – Anything magical

Anna is a strange unit. She starts as an Axe Fighter, but has abysmal strength growth rates and slightly less terrible defense. Her magic, speed, and dexterity are some of the best, though, so you’ll want to class her as a Sage or Mage Knight.

Best class for Yunaka – Thief or Wolf Knight

Yunaka is the rare case where you may actually want to keep her as her base class. Thieves in Engage are much more versatile than in other games and function almost like Assassins (a class not present in Engage), with high speed and critical hit rates. Swordmaster is a popular alternative for her, but I preferred the dagger poison effect and opted for Wolf Knight. This class gives Yunaka better stat boosts in everything except speed, and the Hobble class skill is ideal for keeping enemies at bay.

Best class for Alcryst – Tireur d’elite

Alcryst’s unique class gives him much higher stat boosts than the Sniper class, but best of all is his skill. He gains Luna, which can ignore half of the enemy’s defense.

Best class for Lapis – Wyvern Knight

Lapis is a glass cannon. She rivals Kagetsu in terms of speed and attack power, but her defense is so low that it’s difficult to use her well. General is a popular choice for Lapis, but I opted for Wyvern Knight and enjoyed the benefits it offered. It gives Lapis much better defense without sacrificing speed and generally makes her a solid unit.

Best class for Citrinne – Sage

Citrinne is your typical mage, with high magic and resistance. Mage Knight gives her a slight boost in speed, but Sage really makes her naturally high magic stat shine.

Best class for Diamant – Successeur

Diamant doesn’t have the best stats to begin with, but Successeur gives him a decent boost in most of them. If you get any dexterity-boosting items, make sure he gets at least one. Sol, his class skill, activates based on dexterity, and restores health based on the amount of damage Diamant dealt.

Best class for Amber – Great Knight

Paladin and its high speed boost might seem like an appealing choice for Amber, but his personal skill Aspiring Hero makes Great Knight a safer option. Aspiring Hero raises Amber’s hit rate when allies aren’t around, but drops his avoid chance by 10. He’s going to take a lot of hits unless you surround him with allies, so he needs high defense to survive.

Best class for Jade – General

Jade has slightly lower attack compared to Louis, but much better defense. She works effectively as a General thanks to the big defens and strength buff, but if you’re after better mobility, the Great Knight class works well for her too. Just make sure to end the turn without acting if any mages are nearby, so her skill will buff her resistance.

Best class for Ivy – Lindwurm

Ivy’s unique class keeps her wyvern and lets her use staves in addition to tomes. The class skill Grasping Void deals extra damage to magic users and, combined with Ivy’s naturally high resistance, make her well suited for taking on sages and mage knights later in the game.

Best class for Kagetsu – Swordmaster

Kagetsu is already a swordmaster when you recruit him, and that’s how he should stay. His stats are a perfect complement to the Swordmaster’s growth rates.

Best class for Zelkov – Thief

Zelkov’s base stats put him in the unusual position where his starting class is the best one throughout the game. Most other classes except Griffin Knight hit him with a significant stat reduction, and if you change to that one, you lose the benefit of the dagger poison effect.

Best class for Fogado – Cupido

Cupido is basically a Bow Knight, but with better stats. Its unique skill Back At You and Fogado’s high dexterity also give him a good chance of dealing extra damage during counterattacks. His attack growth rate is rather low regardless of class, so consider stacking him with Emblem skills that boost strength.

Best class for Bunet – Great Knight or General

Bunet is already a capable Great Knight when you first meet him, and most other advanced classes are a step down for him in terms of stats. His speed is quite low, though his high dexterity and decent strength growth rates mean you could change him to General if you wanted to really focus on defense.

Best class for Pandreo – Sage or High Priest

Pandreo joins you as a High Priest already, and he’s well suited to the role thanks to a decent spread of stats all around – in everything except strength, that is. He’s not the best brawler, so unless you need to save Second Seals or need another chain guard unit, he works better as a Sage and still gets to use staves.

Best class for Timerra – Picket

Timerra’s unique class gives her a high chance of dealing extra damage based on her defense stat, and since she has defense in abundance, that means she often dishes out quite a bit of damage in this role.

Best class for Merrin – Wolf Knight or Griffin Knight

Merrin joins as a highly capable Wolf Knight with excellent speed and a good chance of dealing a critical hit or three. The only other class that suits her well is Griffin Knight, as it gives her a slight boost in every stat. You do lose the ability to use daggers, though.

Best class for Panette – Berserker, Paladin, or Wyvern Knight

Panette is a tough one to figure out, as her ideal class will likely depend on the way her stats develop. She’s a powerful Berserker, but she’s also likely to struggle with dexterity and speed. That’s a dangerous combination on higher difficulty levels, but you could change her to a Paladin or Wyvern Knight. Both offer stat boosts across the board except in strength, though Panette’s strength is high enough that she can survive the ding and still dish out heavy damage.

Best class for Hortensia – Sleipnir

Hortensia joins at a point where you’re probably flooded with healers, and she’s not exactly a magical powerhouse. Sleipnir’s unique skill makes her worth keeping in the party, though, as it has a high chance of not consuming a staff’s durability after use.

Best class for Goldmary – Hero or Great Knight

What class fits for Goldmary depends on how she grows for you and who else is in your party. Her speed growth is pretty poor in general, and if that stat remains low while she levels up, you may want to swap to Great Knight. Goldmary has naturally high defense, and as a Great Knight, that stat soars even higher without many penalties, except for speed, which is bad anyway.

However, her starting class of Hero has some perks of its own. The class skill lets Goldmary attack twice in a chain attack if her HP is full, which can be tremendously useful in wearing down foes. Her high defense also means she can take several hits even without heavy armor, so if your army is already full of knights and generals, consider keeping her in the Hero class.

Best class for Rosado – Wyvern Knight

Rosado joins as a Wyvern Knight, and that’s what he should stay. High mobility combined with naturally high strength, and speed mean there’s not much he can’t handle. Just make sure to do some training with Ike in the arena so Rosado can inherit defense skills. That’s his one weak point, and class growth rates don’t always bump it up fast enough.

Best class for Seadall – Dancer

Seadall starts as a Dancer and Qi Adept, and that or the specific Dancer class is best for him. Unlike most martial artists in Engage, Seadall has a high attack rating and excellent speed growth. More importantly, though, is the dance ability that lets allies act again, which you’ll likely get more use out of than his regular attacks.

Best class for Lindon – Sage

Lindon is a bit of an odd one. He joins your party as a middling Sage late in the game, at a point where you probably have several magic users who outclass him in every way. His stat growth rates are low as well. Mage Knight puts a dent in his magic stat, so you’re better off keeping him as a sage. If you really want to use Lindon, consider leveling him up in skirmishes before continuing the story. Speed is his one great strength, and a fast Sage with decent magic strength is always a boon.

Best class for Sapphir – Warrior or Berserker

Sapphir is a strong Warrior when you first meet her in near the endgame, and she excels in that role for the rest of the story. Her personal skill Will to Win, which raises hit and avoid rates if her HP drops below 50 percent, means she would potentially do well as a Berserker too. High HP, strength, and dexterity, combined with a skill that makes landing a hit more likely, mean she’s better suited for that role than most.

There's a small handful of additional characters who join as the game draws to a close. We won't spoil who they are, but you don't need to worry much about their classes. Each functions best in the class they join you with.

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